Whidbey Island University
Whidbey Island University (commonly referred to as WIU, informally Whidbey Island U '''or '''Whidbey Island for athletic purposes) is a regional, comprehensive public university in Rapid City, Washington. Founded in 1920 as Rapid City Community College, the university has grown and expanded over the years before being accredited as a four-year university in 2002. The university is divided into seven colleges: the College of Arts and Humanities; College of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences; College of Education and Professional Studies; College of Fine & Performing Arts; College of Health Science & Public Health; College of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics; and College of Social & Behavioral Sciences. The WIU Rapid City campus is located near downtown in the University Village neighborhood and extends into the Waterfront District and serves an undergraduate class of 5,670. Waterfront facilities include the Marine Research Center and Demarcus A. Carlton Memorial Stadium. The university also operates campuses across Whidbey Island known as WIU Chinook, WIU Langley and WIU Oak Harbor, all founded in 2019. WIU's athletic teams are called the Buccaneers and the school colors are teal, silver and black. Six men's and seven women's varsity teams compete in NCAA Division II in the Northern Pacific Conference. History Whidbey Island University was established as the Rapid City Community College on March 28, 1920 and served a small student population while attracting a few students from Oak Harbor. The college opened with a total of 364 students and 27 instructors, with a curriculum that included classes in the social sciences, trigonometry, physics, botany, and English among others. Vocational classes initially offered included nursing, basic aircraft blueprint reading and food service management. The college graduated its first class in June 1921, with 35 students earning degrees and certificates. The original campus was located just off Main Street where the Orchard Park Residences sits now. It consisted of the administration building which also housed the library, two small academic buildings and a dormatory. They moved to the current campus in 1949. In 1985, the college officially changed its name from Rapid City Community College to Rapid City College, to reflect the fact that it now offered four-year bachelor's degrees in addition to its traditional offerings of two-year associate degrees and certificates. In 1989, just four years after becoming the Rapid City College, administrators approved a name change to the Whidbey Island College to reflect it would serve the entire island rather than just Rapid City proper. In 2002, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities and Washington State Legislature approved the college operating as a four-year university and officially became the Whidbey Island University in September 2002. In 2010, the university purchased approxiamtely 2.5 acres on the city's Dugualla Bay waterfront for a future campus extension and 2013 opened the Whidbey Island University Marine Research Center and Public Aquarium on the site. The university acquired an additional 48.2 acres a quarter mile from the MRC in 2017 with the intention of building a football stadium and additional academic buildings on the site. The Demarcus A. Carlton Memorial Stadium broke ground in 2018 and will open in 2020. A new basketball arena will open next to Memorial Stadium in 2023. The university is attempting to acquire the rest of the waterfront land south of College Blvd for a further academic expansion. Plans include a new expansive Marine Research Center and an expansion of the School of Education to a full college with a new multistory academic hall. Campus WIU's main campus is situated just south of downtown Rapid City, Washington, in the University Village neighborhood and is bounded by College Boulevard to the north and the Whidbey Mountains to the south. The site encompasses 420 acres. The campus has been divided into two since the opening of the Whidbey Island Aquarium on the Dugualla Bay waterfront. Three additional campuses are located in Chinook, Langley and Oak Harbor. Central Campus The Central Campus contains the majority of university facilities and landmarks and is centrally located in the designated University Village neighborhood. It is bounded by College Boulevard to north, Campus Circle to the east and west and the Whidbey Mountains to the south. With WIU's continued growth, administrators proposed a new, multimillion dollar plan to refine portions of the Central Campus, renovating student housing as new LEED-certfieid complexes, introducing new sports fields and museums. Central Campus is also the location of the WIU subway station. Waterfront Campus The Waterfront Campus occupies the land between the intersection of College Blvd & Waterfront Blvd and the Whidbey Mountains to the south. The land was previously the site of a major logging company that shut down operations around 1984, opening the land to redevelopment. The university came into control of the land in 2010 and in 2013 opened the Whidbey Island Aquarium as the cornerstone of the new campus. The MRC Extension opened next door to the aquarium in 2019 while the Demarcus A. Carlton Memorial Stadium will open in 2020 and the Miles Pavillion is expected to open in 2023. Residence halls A number of the residence halls are co-ed, but there are single-gender living enviornments as well as a variety of other living options. All of the residence halls are part of the Residence Hall Association (RHA). Residence halls on campus include: Bedoya, Chinook, Chum, Coho, King, Pink, Sockeye, and Steelhead Halls. Each hall has its own government which organizes events, manages its budget and acts as a forum for student involvement. Dining Services WIU Dining Services operates two dining halls on-campus (Northside and Southside Cafes) as well as a number of coffee stands in various academic buildings. They also operate a catering service that works events on and off campus. Colleges and schools WIU is divided into thirteen colleges and schools housed in ten different buildings. *College of Medicine **School of Nursing **School of Pharmacy **School of Health Science & Public Health *College of Criminology and Criminal Justice *College of Law *College of Humanities and Social & Behavioral Sciences *College of Technology, Engineering and Architecture *College of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences **School of Oceanography **School of Animal Sciences **School of Forestry *College of Education and Professional Studies **School of Business Administration *School of Fine and Performing Arts *University Honors College Athletics Main article: Whidbey Island Buccaneers Whidbey Island University is a member of the NCAA Division II's Northern Pacific Athletic Conference (NorPac) and competes as the Buccaneers. Varsity athletics include men's baseball, basketball, cross country, football and track and field, as well as women's basketball, cross country, soccer, swimming, volleyball and track and field. University Recreation also supports club sports, including bowling, equestrian show team, men's and women's flag football, fencing, polo, men's and women's ice hockey, men's lacrosse, women's fas-pitch softball and wrestling. Whidbey Island's biggest rival is the Southern Oregon State University Spartans. Their rivalry football game is known as the "Border Dispute" and has been played since 2012 with Whidbey Island leading the series 7-2 winning the last five straight. Prior to 2019, all athletic events were hosted off campus, mostly at the historic City Park Stadium. Construction began in 2012 on a number of on-campus stadiums which resulted in the Nathan Adrian Aquatic Center (2014), Gail Devers Track (2016), Bruce Bochte Park (2018) and Devers Fieldhouse (2019) moving all sports except basketball, football and soccer to campus. Football and soccer will move onto campus when the new Damarcus A. Carlton Stadium opens in September 2020. Other facilities Whidbey Island Prep Whidbey Island Prep is a college preparatory school located in University Village. WIU Chinook Opened in September 2019, WIU Chinook is the first branch campus of Whidbey Island University and is located on Sheffield Point in Chinook, Washington. The small campus features a single academic building, library and a small football field for intramurals. WIU Langley Opened in September 2019, WIU Langley is the second branch campus of Whidbey Island University and is located at 723 Camano Avenue in Langley, Washington. It originally operated as the South Whidbey Center of the Skagit Valley College until September 2019 when WIU took over operation of the campus. WIU Oak Harbor Opened in September 2019, WIU Oak Harbor is the third branch campus of Whidbey Island University and is located at 1900 SE Pioneer Way in Oak Harbor, Washington. It originally operated as the Whidbey Island Campus of the Skagit Valley College until September 2019 when WIU took over operation of the campus.